Proposed National Gateway projects create thousands of jobs

The National Gateway
initiative will spur thousands of employment opportunities throughout the
Midwest and East Coast, creating growth and building the nation's economic
competitiveness. The National Gateway is an $842-million, multi-state
public-private infrastructure initiative that will create a more efficient
freight rail route between Mid-Atlantic ports and Midwestern markets. Planned
improvements that will create job opportunities include raising bridges,
increasing tunnel clearances and building new terminals along existing rail
corridors to support the movement of double-stacked containers on rail cars.

The National Gateway will
create more than 50,000 jobs, with almost 10,000 of those jobs created during
the initial construction phase. One half of the jobs created will be located in
14 economically distressed areas. Examples of National Gateway projects that
will benefit local economies include numerous clearance projects, expansion of
the Charlotte intermodal terminal in North Carolina, and the development of a
terminal in Pittsburgh, Pa.

"The National Gateway
project is important for America's competitiveness," said Pennsylvania
Governor Edward G. Rendell. "This initiative helps the environment, it
helps our economy, it helps us in so many different ways."

The project aims to
increase port capacity and the nation's ability to distribute goods, making the
United States more competitive in the global economy. For every dollar of
public money invested in the National Gateway, the project will yield $22 in
public benefits by significantly increasing freight capacity and reducing
transit times between coastal ports and major population centers by 24 to 48
hours. Overall, the National Gateway will save $3.5 billion in shipping and
logistics costs.

To date, the project has
received $395 million in funding commitments from freight transportation
company CSX Corporation and its affiliates. States involved in the project are
expected to fund $189 million, with an additional $258 million requested from
the federal government.